It makes sense they're upset. People spend countless hours researching the difference between a ram 1500 and a tacoma sr5 and they slightly prefer the "look" and "stance" of one over the other. One is more "hunkered down," the other is more "stoic."

Then comes this angular abomination, a ballooned version of the robotaxis in Total Recall, and fits absolutely nowhere in this truck buyer's mindset.

You can take the perspective of blaming the truck buyer for being dumb, or lame, or not visionary enough, but that's not a reasonable or productive perspective.

As far as I can tell, this truck may appeal to people who are in the market for a Hummer-type extreme vehicle, hardcore tech futurists, Tesla fanboys, and people who don't give a shit and are willing to try whatever. None of these categories IMO represent today's truck buyer.

Disclaimer: I'm a tech futurist who doesn't give a shit, and I want one.

Edit: misspelling.

I was kinda horrified when I first saw it. Now I'm thinking I'd drive one!

The initial repulsion to truck not fitting on the hunkered <-> stoic spectrum is quickly overridden by societal queues indicating this could be a real status symbol. And with that, the consumer closes in for the buy.

It looks fucking awesome. Like a futuristic yacht. People that think this is ugly have no taste.

I’m not gonna buy one but can’t wait to see it on the road.

The radical function over form design is an artistic statement. The art world continually has movements that critique and respond to restrictive conventions imposed by previous movements. Marcel Duchamp's "Fountain" comes to mind.

I think this design is supposed to challenge our concept of what we think is ugly and beautiful. It's intentionally shocking, and it's brilliant.

I don't think it's shocking. Anything that challenges the status quo is met with skepticism. No one is right or wrong in this case. People will base their decision on the outcome. If Cybertruck is a hit, they will call Elon a visionary, if it flops, they will call him a loon. In any case, this is quite interesting. Tesla has a cool line up that will offset any probable damage caused by Cybertruck (Model Y, Semi, Roadster).

> You really hate Tesla and prefer the current designs from GM?

I don't think this is a binary choice. It's possible to both dislike current GM designs, AND dislike Tesla's cybertruck design.

The Cybertruck appears to have been pulled directly out of a cyberpunk novel entirely formed, it does look more like a movie prop than a real vehicle.

My initial response to the design was shock and laughter that it was actually a real product. The choice of materials appears to have been a response to the trend of Tesla's getting keyed - I can imagine someone in the design meeting saying "Try keying this, motherfucker". After seeing the ATV option I asked when they're releasing the light-cycles.

I have to wonder how much the design was tested for human factors and against typical truck workloads before it was released. Tesla seem to have taken some numbers on range, towing capacity and cargo and then decided to beat them all, but without considering what else makes a truck useful.

The sloped angular back makes me wonder what it's going to be like trying to get access to anything that's stored near the back.

There's apparently built-in L-track rails on the inside of the bed, but no outside fittings, which might make it more difficult to secure coverings over any loads.

The tail gate looks like it's stupidly heavy, partly because of the rolled steel but also because of the built-in ramp. The latches don't appear to be sturdy enough to ensure any payload remains secure, either.

The 'roller shutter' cover, while looking neat looks like it'll be an early failure point with dirt and grit getting into the tracks, jamming up the works. Also, any issues with alignment (eg if a load shifts) are going to make it a pain to repair.

All the sharp corners make me wonder how often you're going to curse the designers every time you whack your arm or knee against them, and if you use it as more than something to pick up the kids from soccer in, how long until they get dented. Yes, I saw the sledgehammer trick, but that was against a panel where it had the option to flex. I dare them to try it against the open back of the tail-gate - the kind of damage you might get putting whitegoods or pallet of bricks/tiles in the back.

Speaking of sharp corners: Tesla has a (historical?) problem with tolerances on their fit and finish - I notice the doors and trailers all have a bunch of sharp corners meeting, where those things will become very visible.

People can hate the design, but they will benefit from the shakeup within the existing vehicle manufacturers.

(I do hate that there is no dashboard)

Maybe they're comparing it to what they hoped it would look like.

It's not just new, it's wrong, it's too brutalistic. Especially considering it might not justbea small run of production for remote places (or planets even) but might be a common sight at breakfast.

Conspicuous consumption is ugly.

Ordinarily I'd agree but at a $39K base price, at first glance it seems quite practical and probably made execs at the big car companies pee a little bit in their pants. I'm sure this is a bit specious, and there will be a pile of add-ons that will certainly qualify as increasingly conspicuous.

It should be extremely hard to believe the price. Basic estimates put the cost of the cheapest model's battery at over $20,000, even at Tesla's magic $100/kWh number.

The single-motor $39,900 model is likely to be about as real as the $35,000 Model 3.

$35k model 3 wasn’t that far from true. You can get a model 3 bare bones for less than 40k right now.

Please elaborate in the context of the Cybertruck (isn't part of the appeal its relatively low cost)?

At $40,000, it's still a luxury vehicle. It's exactly as conspicuous as a Hummer.

I don't see it as any more conspicuous than a Model 3 at $35k. You're getting a truck and more functionality, so $5k seems like extreme value, not conspicuous. It's also an EV, so the equivalent ICE car should cost around ~$30k, which is a nicely trimmed sedan, but certainly not a luxury truck.

Woah, I was never excluding the other models from my assessment.

Do you consider the Model 3 to be conspicuous consumption?

but it really is so much more eco friendly

Sure, if you ignore the lithium mining.

Overall I agree but we really need the equivalent of a corolla before EVs takes off, and sourcing lithium is a major pain in the ass. Thank god for the convenient change of power to a business friendly party in bolivia! (/s)

What would actually be eco-friendly (and substantially cheaper) is CNG conversion of a used truck. You can do that today for under $5k. Driving one of these instead of any other consumer car makes as much sense as driving a Hummer in the suburbs.